Chapter 348: Sister-Complex Megumin

"Strange—you're making such a racket out here, and nobody from the Crimson Demon Village comes out to check what's going on?"

"Maybe back before Megumin left, the clan already got used to the noise she kicked up every single day."

"So you're saying... hearing the commotion might even make them feel nostalgic?"

"Not impossible."

Her companions were teasing her right to her face, and Megumin couldn't take it. "The blast of Explosion magic is not noise—it's the music of surging magical power!"

"I think your sense of hearing might be a little different from ours." Jhin had no special taste for hearing music in an explosion, but the remark earned him swift retaliation.

Since he could already see the wooden sign reading "Crimson Demon Village" not far ahead, he dismissed his [Elemental Armament] and walked carrying only Megumin on his back, while she angrily clamped down on his ear and gnawed at it.

"Are you sure you want to bite my ear right in front of your hometown folks?"

That line made her give up on getting back at Jhin for now; she just whimpered obediently by his ear, promising he'd get his later.

Rumor held that the Crimson Demon Village was a place where Archmages wandered around by the dozen and ordinary mages were a dime a dozen, yet there wasn't a single iconic structure like a mage's tower here. Instead the place brimmed with rural charm, with various Japanese-style buildings scattered here and there and cherry trees lining both sides of the road.

Even in high summer they bloomed out of season, and Megumin introduced them to her companions with pride. "These are the all-season glimmering cherry trees unique to the Crimson Demon Clan—they bloom no matter the season, and a single blooming lasts a whole month!"

Kokkoro caught a drifting pink cherry petal. "That really is impressive. I never imagined I'd see a sight like this in summer."

"Achoo!" Kyaru sneezed several times in a row; she'd accidentally breathed in a petal just now, and her nose was itching. "Megumin, which way is your house?"

"Just head east."

Gazing at the cherry blossoms drifting down all around, Jhin said to Pecorine beside him, "Back in my world there's a food called flower cake. I wonder if the continent of Astraea has anything like it."

"Cherry blossom cake? Never heard of it. How's it made?"

"The way it's done, you wash the petals clean, then mix in sugar and other ingredients to make the filling, wrap it in a flaky pastry crust to shape it, and pop it into the oven. Oh, and this method works for just about any petal with a distinctive fragrance."

Just from Jhin's description, Pecorine could already imagine the deliciousness of that fragrant, sweet pastry blossoming in her mouth. She demanded he hand over an empty basket so she could gather petals—today she was going to try making flower cakes!

"Hey, hey, we've come all this way—let's head to my house first. These cherry blossoms won't wither anytime soon anyway."

"Fair enough—getting home matters more." Pecorine slung the empty basket onto her back with a grin. "Megumin, you keep saying it's a hassle, but you actually care quite a bit about how things are at home."

"I'm only worried about Komekko and Chomusuke, that's all. After being gone this long, who knows whether it's been eaten by Komekko."

"Your little sister eats Familiars?" Jhin was dumbfounded. Was her sister really that ferocious?

Recalling that most of the Crimson Demon Clan had wildly eccentric personalities, an image slowly took shape in his mind—a sister with a burly, brawny frame but a delicate face.

"Uh... my family's pretty poor, and there's usually not much to eat. Chomusuke probably just looks a bit like a sesame dumpling, so Komekko's always thinking about eating it."

"For you to have grown up this big... that couldn't have been easy."

Megumin suspected Jhin was taking a veiled dig at her, but she had no proof, so she could only tilt her head and bump him twice in irritation.

Following a small path onward, a Japanese-style wooden house that could fairly be called "long fallen into disrepair" came into view. Jhin's mouth twitched. "As I recall... we gave the Crimson Demon Clan a forty percent cut of the sanitary napkin profits. Even split across the whole clan, your family should've pulled in a decent sum. So why is the house... so... quaint?"

"Don't tell me her family moved without letting her know?"

"Is that why they wrote asking Megumin to come home and see the new place?"

"Makes sense."

"Haah~" Megumin let out a long sigh. Her companions' consideration did make her feel a little better, but facts were facts and she couldn't deny them. "That's my house. It's looked exactly like this for as long as I can remember."

Earlier she'd eaten a cookie dropped by a Dorom Colossus that restored magical power, so she could just barely move now. Climbing down from Jhin's back with some difficulty, she straightened the magic hat on her head and led her companions up to the front door. Sliding it open, she called out, "Dad, Mom, Kome, I've brought my companions home!"

Pit-pat, pit-pat.

A patter of light footsteps sounded, and a cute little short-haired girl with a star hair ornament and a small ponytail came rushing over.

"Kome, I'm home." The gentleness in Megumin's voice made her companions turn and stare—it was the first time they'd ever seen her like this.

"Oh~" The little sister she called "Kome"—whose full name was Komekko—spotted Jhin standing behind her big sister. Her eyes went wide and her mouth slowly opened until it formed a perfect triangle.

The heartwarming sisterly reunion everyone had pictured never materialized. Instead, Komekko spun around, her patchwork cloak of assorted fabrics flaring high, and her childish voice nearly blew the roof off. "Dad! Mom! Big Sis lured a man home!"

Having shouted that, she darted straight into the house, leaving the members of the Gourmet Edifice with their eyeballs shattered all over the floor.

"Your little sister... has quite the sense of humor."

"If you don't know what to say, then don't say anything—Kome is a good kid!"

"Megumin, you're not a sister-con, are you?"

"So what if I am!"

"Nothing. It's nice—I like little sisters too."

Megumin whirled around, rose onto her tiptoes, grabbed Jhin's shoulders, and shook him hard. "You—don't go making someone's little sister a conquest target the second we get home! She's only seven. Are you some kind of pervert?"

"You're the one who needs to get a grip—stop filling your head with filthy thoughts all day long!"

Seeing the two about to start bickering in the doorway again, Kokkoro and Pecorine hurried to break it up, while Kyaru started playing with a little black cat that had appeared from who-knows-where, a red cross pattern on the top of its head.

"Ahh... so tired. We just got home and I'm already completely worn out." Megumin casually tossed the precious weapon from her mouth onto the entryway floor and, shoulders slumped, swayed side to side like a zombie as she led her companions into a living room that looked more or less normal.

If you overlooked the cracks in the corners and edges, the living room really was fairly normal.

Megumin, who'd meant to lie down for a nap, suddenly remembered something and nudged the cross-legged Jhin with a clean, pale little foot, waggling her eyebrows. "Doesn't this count as meeting the parents? Aren't you nervous?"

Jhin shot her a disdainful glance. "You're looking at a boyfriend who's got several girlfriends. What kind of scene haven't I seen?"

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